South Korea has lodged a protest over the Japanese government's approval of school textbooks that dilute the forced nature of wartime labor by Koreans and intensify territorial claims to the Dokdo islets.

Vice foreign minister Cho Hyun-dong on Tuesday summoned Naoki Kumagai, deputy chief of mission at the Japanese embassy, to the foreign ministry to protest the matter.

The deputy chief was called in as Japanese ambassador Koichi Aiboshi is currently in Japan.

After meeting with Cho, Kumagai left the ministry building without responding to reporters' questions about how the latest issue may affect bilateral relations.

Despite the conciliatory mood with Tokyo in recent days, South Korea's government is expected to continuously demand that Japan correct its stance regarding historical distortions.

A foreign ministry official told reporters that Seoul will continue to communicate with Japan through diplomatic channels and express regret, file protest and demand change on the textbook issue.